1. Airbus To Bring Factory, 1,000 Jobs to South Alabama
Airbus announced plans last week to build a $600 million aircraft assembly plant in Mobile, giving the European company its American factory and south Alabama the promise of 1,000 jobs.
Airbus President and CEO Fabrice Bregier said the company will assemble the A320 family of aircraft at the Brookley Aeroplex, employing 1,000 at full capacity and creating thousands more jobs at parts suppliers and other related businesses expected to locate near the plant.
Airbus said it will break ground on the massive factory next summer and create more than 3,000 jobs during a two-year construction period. The plant is slated to deliver its first planes in 2016, and will be ramped up to full production of 40-50 planes annually by 2018.
2. Honda Supplier To Employ 200 in Talladega Area
TALLADEGA — Another Japanese automotive supplier will be operating in east Alabama by this fall. M-Tek will make parts for the Honda Odyssey and Pilot and the Acura MBX at an industrial park near Talladega. Talladega County's economic development director, Calvin Miller, says the plant should be running by October.
Getting an existing building ready for production is expected to cost $6.5 million. The company is expected to have about 200 workers and a payroll of $7 million after three years. M-Tek already has one plant operating in Alabama. It manufactures automotive parts in Prattville. The company's North American headquarters is in Tennessee.
3. Honda To Expand To Support Additional Product Line
Honda Manufacturing of Alabama LLC will hire more than 100 engineers, managers and other professionals over the next three months to support the addition of the Acura MDX to its lineup, the company has announced.
The announcement is the most recent of several related to the luxury sport utility vehicle, which is expected to begin rolling off the assembly line in Lincoln sometime next year. Acura is Honda's luxury vehicle division, and the MDX will be the first Acura product built by Alabama workers.
The company is hiring professionals for jobs in production management, purchasing, engineering, quality assurance, data analysis and other fields.
Honda previously announced it would hire about 50 professionals and about 140 people for assembly line and related jobs.
4. Steris To Hire 80 People in Montgomery
MONTGOMERY – Medical manufacturing company STERIS Corp. is expanding its Montgomery operations with an approximately $11 million investment and will hire about 80 people during a two-year period.
The company, which already has approximately 300 employees in Montgomery, is bringing fabrication and assembly operations here. STERIS manufactures surgical products, including tables, lights and equipment management systems. The construction phase of the project is expected to be concluded in early December, 2012.
“STERIS Corp. has shown that Montgomery, Alabama, has the type of business climate where companies want to expand,” said Alabama Department of Commerce Secretary Greg Canfield. “Combine an excellent partnership of state and local officials along with employees who have a work ethic to succeed, and you have the recipe for continued business growth. We look forward to continued business success for STERIS Corp. in Alabama.”
“When a company such as STERIS Corp. brings new operations here and adds 80 employees. It speaks volumes about the confidence the company’s top executives have in the City of Montgomery and the River Region,” Montgomery Mayor Todd Strange said. “We will not let you down.”
Mac McBride, director of operations for the STERIS Montgomery facility said, “The hard work and dedication of our employees has made this expansion possible. We are grateful to them for their efforts and also for the tremendous support we have received from the state, city, county, and the Montgomery Area Chamber of Commerce. We look forward to continuing our long and prosperous relationship with Montgomery.”
5. Jack Daniels To Bring 200 Jobs to Alabama with New Cooperage
MONTGOMERY — The company behind Jack Daniel’s Tennessee Whiskey will create a barrel-making plant in Lawrence County, bringing about 200 jobs to north Alabama, Governor Robert Bentley and state and company officials announced in June.
The new facility, which represents Brown-Forman Corp.’s second move into Alabama in less than 12 months, involves a $55 million to $60 million capital investment for the company, according to Greg Roshkowski, vice president and general manager of Brown-Forman Cooperages.
6. Vehicles, Coal, Plastic Help Raise Export Level by 17 Percent in State
BIRMINGHAM Alabama exports continue to climb this year, with the latest data showing a 17 percent rise over 2011. Through April, the value of state goods shipped around the world stood at $6.5 billion, according to the Alabama Department of Commerce.
Canada is the state's top trading partner so far this year, followed by China, Germany, Mexico and the United Kingdom. There has been double-digit year-over-year growth in each of those markets, except for China, where Alabama exports have grown 9 percent so far this year.
7. New Crosstie Company Plans To Hire 100 by 2013
Boatright Companies is building a major state-of-the-art railroad crosstie plant in Chilton County, a $55 million investment with plans to have 100 workers employed by the end of 2013.
The new 400,000-square-foot facility on 100 acres in the Chilton County Industrial Park will put the Boatright plant on a CSX rail line and give the company the ability to more than double its current railroad tie production capacity.
The plant will be able to season, treat and distribute as many as 2 million railroad ties per year, the same volume as at the company’s current plant in Montevallo. However, the Chilton County plant will also have room to expand and boost capacity by another 1 million ties per year, if necessary.
8. Company To Employ 70 People in Alabaster with New Facility
BIRMINGHAM - Alabama Crown Distributing Co., a distributor of liquor, wine, beer and other beverages, is building a $16 million facility in Alabaster. The new facility will employ 70 people.
Operations are expected to begin in August at the 175,000-square-foot building at Shelby West Corporate Park, near the Shelby County Airport.
Alabama Crown is a part of McDonough, Ga.-based Georgia Crown Distributing Co. The company has a facility in Birmingham, and some of the jobs there are being relocated to the new facility in Alabaster, said James Dedes, executive director of the Shelby County Economic and Industrial Development Authority.
9. Luxury SUV Goes into Production in Alabama in June
The 2013 Mercedes-Benz GL-Class, a luxury sport utility vehicle from the German automaker, began production at the company’s Alabama factory in June. The vehicle goes on sale in the U.S. in September.
Mercedes-Benz officially kicked off production of the redesigned 2013 GL-Class at its Alabama factory last month, another milestone for the facility that launched the state's auto industry.
The luxury full-sized sport utility vehicle, which is entering its second generation, accounts for roughly 35 percent of the output at the German automaker's 2,800-employee plant in the Tuscaloosa County town of Vance.
Through the first five months of this year, U.S. sales of the GL-Class are up 14 percent over the same time period in 2011, and the outlook for luxury purchases remains strong.
10. Nufab Rebar To Employ 50 People in Riverside
RIVERSIDE – Nufab Rebar LLC announced its plans to build a new $7 million facility at a groundbreaking in Riverside last month. The company plans to hire 50 employees within the first three years of operation with expected growth to a potential of more than 80 employees over the next five years. The move would make Nufab Rebar the largest employer in the City of Riverside.
Nufab Rebar LLC is a fabricator of concrete reinforcing steel and related products. In August 2008, Nufab Rebar LLC was acquired by Harris Steel Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Nucor Corporation Since the company’s inception in 2005, it has grown to 10 southern U.S. locations with headquarters in Auburn, Indiana. The company plans to invest in the facility on its site just off the I-20 exit.
“This project reflects the importance state and local partnerships in attracting new jobs and economic development to Alabama,” Governor Robert Bentley said. “We have worked hard to create a positive business climate, and we are pleased that the State of Alabama could play a role in bringing new jobs to St. Clair County. Further, we thank Nufab Rebar for the company’s investment in the state, and we look forward to a long-term, positive relationship with the company.”
Because of the new jobs, the City of Riverside was granted a $1 Million Industrial Access Grant from the Alabama Industrial Access Road & Bridge Program for road improvements. These improvements will provide safe and suitable access to the site for the company and surrounding users. The City of Riverside also has a pending grant through the Economic Development Administration for a future public rail spur that the company will utilize.
“All of us at Nufab Rebar are very excited to be building our new facility in the City of Riverside. We will begin construction of a fabrication facility that will create over 80 new jobs. The new facility will fabricate rebar for use in reinforced concrete construction projects throughout Alabama and its surrounding states. We have worked very closely with Riverside Mayor Jessup, the Economic Development Council, St. Clair County officials and other city staff, and appreciate the assistance and support that they have provided for this project,” said Dennis Swinney, Nufab Rebar LLC.
Alabama Department of Commerce Secretary Greg Canfield expressed his appreciation to the company for the jobs that will be created for the citizens of the St. Clair County area.
“Securing up to 80 new jobs for this community and for St. Clair County is significant. We appreciate Nufab Rebar’s confidence in Alabama’s business climate,” Canfield said. “We stand ready to work with the company to help it prosper in Alabama for years to come.”